by Jarrett Renshaw
WILMINGTON, Del., Jan. 3 (Reuters) – US President Joe Biden on Sunday told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodimir Zelensky that the United States and its allies will respond “firmly” if Russia comes to further invade Ukraine, the House reported. white in a press release.
The telephone exchange between the two leaders took place days after Joe Biden met twice in the space of a month with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid tensions on the Ukrainian border, where some 100,000 Russian troops. are deployed.
“President Biden has made it clear that the United States and its allies and partners will respond firmly if Russia further invades Ukraine,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement.
Joe Biden and Volodimir Zelenski discussed preparations for a series of diplomatic meetings aimed at settling the crisis with Russia, the US presidency said.
Via Twitter, Volodimir Zelenski said he had discussed with his American counterpart joint actions intended to maintain peace in Europe and prevent further escalation.
“The first international discussion of the year with (the President of the United States) demonstrates the special nature of our relations,” he said, adding that Kiev appreciates the “unwavering support” it enjoys.
American and Russian representatives are due to take part in the security talks on January 9 and 10 in Geneva, before a meeting between Russia and NATO and then a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
During his telephone interview with Vladimir Putin last week, Joe Biden said it was important for Russia to take steps towards easing tensions ahead of the Geneva meetings.
A Kremlin adviser told the press that Vladimir Poutine had warned Joe Biden that American sanctions could cause “a complete rupture” of relations between Russia and the United States and seriously damage relations between Moscow and the West.
The Kremlin repeats wanting security guarantees from NATO, opposing a possible enlargement of the Eastern Alliance and asking that it does not have offensive weapons systems in the region.
Joe Biden on Sunday underlined his support for diplomatic measures to ease tensions with Moscow while reaffirming Washington’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the White House said. (Report Jarrett Renshaw and Jan Wolfe, with Pavel Polityuk and Matthias Williams; French version Laetitia Volga and Jean Terzian)